Page 7 of Christmas Chaos
‘Zo, you’re so busy it’s a miracle I see you at all.’
Zoe sighed. Fiona was right. She’d come to Scotland looking for a quieter life but had ended up the Countess of Kinloch, married to Thor’s overly libidinous brother and fifty per cent responsible for a castle and thousands of acres of land. Something was going to have to give. She took a gulp of tea.
‘Fi, is the milk off?’
‘Fresh this morning.’ Fiona sipped hers. ‘Tastes okay to me.’
Zoe took another mouthful. ‘It tastes weird.’
‘Decaf teabags?’
‘Nah, I’ve been drinking decaf here for the last six months.’
‘Zoeeeeeeee...’ Fiona drew out the last syllable, her eyes sparkling.
She shook her head. ‘I can’t be. I tested negative again this morning.’
‘Are you late?’ Fiona asked.
‘Four days, but that’s normal. You know my cycles are all over the place.’
Fiona leaned back in her chair and pulled a pregnancy test out of a low drawer, placing it on the table.
‘You could do another one?’
Zoe shrugged. ‘It’ll still be negative. They always are.’
‘Well then you’d know?’
‘I don’t know, Fi.’
‘Zoe, Zoe, Zoe, Zoe,’ Fiona chanted, getting louder and louder.
‘Dohee! Dohee! Dohee!’ yelled Liam.
‘Alright, alright!’ She laughed. ‘I’ll go pee on a stick.’
A minute later she was back and laid the test face down on a wad of toilet paper. Fiona set the timer on the oven, and they waited. Even Liam was silent, his eyes flicking between them as he tried to figure out what was going on.
The beep of the oven went through Zoe with a crack of adrenaline. Every time was the same. The nervous hope, the flash-forwards to possible futures, then the deflating disappointment at the sight of only one blue line.
‘Go on then, look,’ Fiona urged.
Zoe flipped it over as if she wasn’t bothered and stared at two blue lines. She blinked. Was it true? Was shereallypregnant? She looked in astonishment at Fiona’s shocked face.
‘Well, bugger me, Zo.’ Fiona exhaled. ‘You’re going to have a baby.’
‘Bugga mee! Bugga mee! Babyyyyyyy!’ agreed Liam.
* * *
Rory’s foreheadwas damp with sweat, his heart racing.
‘Come on, Zoe, push, lass!’ Alasdair yelled.
The sounds of her pain echoed around them. Things were not going well.
‘Rory, talk to her. I’m going in again.’
